Microgel Coated Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Can Reverse Lung Tissue Fibrosis
August 24, 2021 | Terry Sharrer
“. . . [University of Illinois at Chicago] researchers engineered a thin microgel that, when designed in a specific way, can boost the therapeutic potential of MSCs to degrade scar tissue and regenerate healthy tissue in mouse models of fibrosis. . . . [These scientists] engineered the microgel, which is as soft as healthy lung tissue, and incorporated a small protein called tumor necrosis factor-alpha. Also known as TNF-alpha, this protein acts as an inflammatory signal that encourages MSCs to synthesize collagenase. Collagenase is an enzyme that degrades excess collagen in fibrotic tissues and promotes the restoration of damaged tissues.” MORE
Image Credit: biomat.net and University of Illinois at Chicago